Most morning skates on game day are simply a chance for the players to loosen up. A little passing, a little shooting, some odd-man rushes — but no heavy lifting.

Understandably, things were a little different this morning as the Sharks were getting ready for tonight’s game against Anaheim. Not that anything got too combative, but the drill lasted almost a full 30 minutes and there was a little more contact than usual.

“Three days off is something we needed and something everybody desires at this time of the year,” Coach Todd McLellan explained. “Obviously we spent some family time, but now it’s back to work. And to go into the battles without having experienced them for three days, I don’t think was a good idea.

“So we spent a little more time in practice and I’m sure they’ll do the same thing,” he added, referring to the Ducks. “You’ll probably see 30 teams doing that today.”

Defenseman Rob Blake said it was more about getting guys mentally engaged than any of the light physical contact.

“Mentally he wanted to get guys into it,” Blake said. “There were a few one on ones where you had to think about it more. Mostly our routine in morning skates is pretty much the same, you get through it and you loosen up. With three days off, they want you thinking and understanding what our opponent is going to be like.”

****Late in the Dallas game, McLellan moved Jed Ortmeyer onto the second line alongside Joe Pavelski and Ryane Clowe. He kept the three together against Chicago and will do the same at the start of tonight’s game against the Ducks.

Ortmeyer, who had been on the fourth line, said he can’t let his new surroundings change his approach.

“The reason they put me there,” Ortmeyer said, “is to go and do the things I was doing before, get in on the forecheck, get thepuck for Joe and Clowe, try to add a little speed and get in there, chip pucks behind their D and be hard on their D. Push those guys back so Pavs and Clowe have a little more time to make some plays

“My mindset’s the same, for sure,” he added. “I’m not going to try and get fancy and try and make plays I normally wouldn’t make just because of who I’m playing with. That’s when my game starts to fall by the wayside. I lose track of what helped me get to this point.”

Pavelski said Ortmeyer “works hard and he’s got a little polish to his game, too. He’s got a good shot and he makes plays. But his compete level is up there, which is always a good thing.”

McLellan said he kept Ormeyer on that line because “I like Jed’s intensity. It’s not about scoring goals all the time. It’s not about assists, it’s not about power play time.

“Jed’s play warrants his promotion to that line,” he added, “and other’s play warrants that demotion, if you want to call it that, to an unfamiliar spot.”

That was a reference to Devin Setoguchi, who finds himself on the fourth line. Based on this morning’s practice, here’s how the forward combinations will shape up tonight:

Marleu-Thornton-Heatley

Clowe-Pavelsk-Ortmeyer

Malhotra-Nichol-McGinn

McLaren-Mitchell-Setoguchi

****Evgeni Nabokov will be in goal tonight after being named Friday to Team Russia for the February Olympics in Vancouver.

That’s not a surprise, of course. But Nabokov, it turned out, got a pretty good idea Tuesday in Chicago that he’d be on the team when he met with one of his childhood heroes, legendary Soviet goalie Vladislav Tretiak, who is the general manager for Team Russia.

Tretiak is also a goaltending consultant for the Blackhawks and was there for the Sharks’ 3-2 victory.

“It’s awesome,” Nabokov said of being named to the team. “It’s an honor to play for the national team and be with the guys you play against. A lot of them are top top top players in the world and being in the same group with them is a pleasure.”

Joe Thornton was asked what it would be like playing against Nabokov in the Olympics. Thornton quickly reminded the questioner that he was not yet a member of Team Canada, but that if he were “lucky enough to make the team, I’d love to score on him.”

David Pollak

David Pollak has been following the NHL forever and at the Mercury News as an editor or reporter since 1987. For almost a decade he wrote about the Sharks as the paper's Fan in the Stands before joining the sports department in 2001. He became the Sharks beat writer before the 2007-08 season and began this blog at that time. You can also follow him on Twitter at @PollakOnSharks.